April fool jokes around the web

It’s that date again, folks. If you’ve seen an amazing new service or something that sounds too good to be true, it probably is — very few companies take April 1st seriously. Reports of April Fools jokes are pouring in; as we do every year, we’ll mention the ones that are either very funny or amazingly clever.

Last year, some of the stuff we saw really made us laugh; let’s see what the usual suspects (Google, your staff obviously has too much time on their hands) are up to this year. We’ll keep updating the post, so send us your ideas in the comments.

Everyone’s an admin on Reddit.

We expected a lot from Reddit on this particular day and boy, have they delivered. Today, everyone on the site gets to be an administrator, which results in a) chaos and b) lots of hilarious comments. Hey, I just banned someone!

Google changes name to Topeka

Directly from Google: “Early last month the mayor of Topeka, Kansas stunned the world by announcing that his city was changing its name to Google. We’ve been wondering ever since how best to honor that moving gesture. Today we are pleased to announce that as of 1AM (Central Daylight Time) April 1st, Google has officially changed our name to Topeka.”

Nice move. I’ll Topeka Google, and you Google Topeka, OK?

unixkcd

Familiar with Unix? Then you’ll have a lot of fun navigating the popular web comic, XKCD, today. In case your Unix knowledge is a little rusty, start with “ls -al”. It’ll all start coming back from there.

YouTube text videos

YouTube has gone old school today by announcing TEXTp, a text-only mode for the service. From their blog: “By replacing the images in the video with a series of letters and numbers, the videos are far less taxing on our system — and have the added benefit of promoting literacy!”

I don’t know what they’re talking about — I’m still browsing with Lynx, it’s all text to me.

iPhone to iPad converter

Can’t afford an iPad? Why not just convert your iPhone with this magical, mystical and revolutionary dock which magnifies your iPhone’s touch screen to the exact dimensions of the iPad screen? After all, size is the only difference between the two devices, right?

Sophos: Protection Through Distraction

Sophos has made a break-through in dealing with hackers: Planting romantic fiction files to distract the uninvited guests. Hit up the video above to find out how this innovative solution is protecting corporate IT systems worldwide.

DeviantART goes Gaga for Twilight

At first glance, popular art community DeviantART seems to be the same as always. But look closer: Every user’s icon has been turned into either Lady Gaga or something Twilight-related. Team Jacob FTW.

Firebox Offers Adult Naughty Step

UK-based online retailer Firebox has five new products on offer this morning. Our favorite is the Adult Naughty Step, a product that recreates the familiar childhood experience of “go and think about what you’ve done” for adults. For only $45, the step provides three steps of scaled naughtiness from “quite naughty” to “might go to prison.”

ThinkGeek Launches the iCade

How cool would it be, asks ThinkGeek, to slide your iPad into a desktop-sized arcade cabinet and rock it old school with some Pac-Man or Space Invaders? We’ll tell you now — it would be AWESOME!!

Google Street View Goes 3D

Today, Google added a fun new option to its Street View feature (available in Google Maps by dragging the little man icon from the upper left part of the screen anywhere on the map): 3D view. Luckily, I just happen to have a pair of 3D glasses lying nearby! The idea is amazing, but I have to admit all I got from it was a headache. Don’t be afraid to experiment with it, however — some areas work better than others.